Category Archives: Bermuda

The longest day and shortest night of the year. This photo was taken at around 1030pm in London and the distant horizon is still light. This is quite amazing for a Malaysian, where this doesn’t happen at the equator.

Today is the first day I’ve been awake early enough to catch the sunrise.. and this was because I had a flight to catch. Sunrise is from 715am onwards. The sky lights up like gold and the clouds seem to break apart from the heat of the sun-rays. This is a fluke from a moving taxi and taken as we reached the Bermuda Airport. The airport sits on a tiny island called St David’s and we have to cross a bridge from the main island to reach the airport.

One of the first things I noticed is how slow everyone moves here… in comparison to Hong Kong. At first it irritated me, e.g. I was on the bus and a man had pressed the bell to get down. When the bus stopped, the man leisurely got up and ambled slowly off the bus. I caught myself mumbling at how inconsiderate he was to hold up the whole bus! In Hong Kong, before the bus came to the stop, everyone would be queuing-up at the door to get-off.

In just over a year, I’ve become so Hongkie in that aspect, always busy, always rushing, so much so that it’s become habit. My pace is so quick that I’ve upset some local Bermudians with my hurried manner. The good thing is after spending a week here, I’ve noticed myself slowing down… a little. I’ve made a conscious effort to stop and look at the sky for just a few more minutes, chew my food gently, rather than swallowing it whole, walk a little slower, not look at my watch so often, speak slower and spend more time just chatting casually (or aimlessly). These are all positive changes, which I’m sure will do wonders for my stress-levels and heart.

Almost everything shuts down on Sunday – no retail shopping (except maybe the supermarket), in some places the bus only operate from 10am to 5pm and most restaurants are closed, except the ones in hotels. This was a problem for me, as I wanted to see Bermuda on Sunday.

In terms of logistics, I had to time myself so that I didn’t miss the bus, as the frequency is less and I’d have to wait 30 mins for the next one. In terms of food, I had to check that the place I wanted to visit had an opened restaurant. It was quite sad that when I wanted to buy dinner in the City, the only place that was opened was KFC! Be prepared for sullen service at restaurants that open on Sunday… who would blame them, I’d rather be outdoors than serve another.

The best thing to do on a Sunday is enjoy the beach, soak up the sun and get tanned…. and order Room Service.

A Bermudian friend sent a link to some photos of Bermuda in the 1930s. Bermuda is such a small state that it’s hard to imagine it any smaller. I was told that there used to be a railway track that ran the length of the state. The railway has since given way to roads and other forms of transportation. The railway track has turned into a trail for walkers and runners.